Waffle iron and improved expansion hinge therefor



Oct. 20, 1953 H. H. MILLER WAFFLE IRON AND IMPROVED EXPANSION HINGE THEREFOR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Dec. 28, ,1950

I 'Inventof: Homew- H. Miller Hi6 Attorney.

Oct. 20, 1953 E 2,655,687

WAFFLE IRON AND IMPROVED EXPANSION HINGE THEREFOR 7 Filed Dec. 28, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 [5 z; F/g.

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Inventor IIovwszv- H. Millef Patented Oct. 20, 1953 WAFFLE IRON AND IMPROVED EXPANSION HINGE THEREFOR Homer H. Miller, Bridgeport, Conn., assignor to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application December 28, 1950, Serial No. 203,121

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to cooking appliances and more particularly to an improved expansion hinge construction between upper and lower grids for waflle irons, sandwich grills and similar appliances.

Wafile irons conventionally include a pair of opposed grid elements, electrically heated for baking of wafiies or other edibles between the grid surfaces. For convenience the grid elements are hinged together to facilitate relative movement of the grid elements between open and closed positions. Furthermore, the hinge employed must be capable not only of a pivotal movement but also of displacement upon expansion of the batter during baking.

It is, therefore, an object of my invention to provide an improved expansion hinge which is connected directly to the grid elements and located entirely within their outline.

Another object of my invention is to construct such a hinge permitting relative displacement of the grid elements, as well as pivotal movement, and with a stop to limit the extent of pivotal movement.

A further object of my invention is to provide a simplified construction of such an expansion hinge to reduce manufacturing and assembly costs, while also providing a wafile iron of improved configuration and appearance.

Still another object of my invention is to construct a waffle iron and hinge therefor providing accurate alignment of the opposed mating grid surfaces.

In accomplishment of the foregoing objectives, a feature of my invention consists in attaching a hinge bracket directly to one of the grid elements within a cavity, with a portion of the bracket extending away from the grid surface. This bracket is slotted to receive loosely a hinge plate which is secured thereto. The hinge plate in turn is secured to the other grid element through a pivotal connection within a recess integrally molded or otherwise formed as a part of the grid element. In addition, the hinge bracket includes a stop cooperative with an edge of the pivotally mounted grid to limit rotational movement to slightly more than 90. The loose fit between the hinge bracket and hinge plate permits the relative displacement of the grid elements to a parallel spaced relation to accommodate the rising of the waflle batter. It is also a feature of my invention to conceal all of this hinge structure within the outlines of the coopcrating grids.

Features of my invention which I believe to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claim. The details of my invention, however, both as to its organization and operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may be better understood by reference to the following description taken in con-,

2 nection with the accompanying drawings, in which 1 is a side elevation, partially in section, of a waffle iron employing my invention; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the lower grid element and hinge bracket for the waiiie iron shown by Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; 4 is an exploded View, in perspective, of a hinge bracket and hinge plate in accordance with my invention; Fig. 5 is a perspective view similar to Fig. 4, with the parts in,

assembled relation; Fig. 6 is an enlarged side elevation, partially in section, of a waille iron showing one operative position; and Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 6 with the parts in a different operative position.

Referring now to the drawings, in Fig. 1 I. have shown a wafile iron, by way of example, having a generally circular configuration with a base plate i carrying supporting feet 2 and an outer casing 3. Casing 3 in turn supports a cup-shaped housing or shell {enclosing the lower section of, the waffle iron. A similar housing 5, in an inverted position, encloses the upper section of the wafile iron. A suitable handle 6 of heat insulating m terial may be provided for convenience in lifting the upper section to an open position. If desired, a controlling knob I may be positioned on casing 3 for automatic control of heating elements 8 carried on insulating supports 9 within each housing. While in Fig. 1 I have shown only the heating element within the lower housing, it

is to be understood that a similar unit may be included within the upper section of the iron. Preferably each heating element assembly is constructed and supported within the appliance in accordance with the structure disclosed and claimed in my copending application Serial No. 204,368, filed January 4,, 1951, now Patent No. 2,635,169, issued April It, 1953 and assigned to the assignee of the present invention.

As shown in Fig. 1, each housing member is connected to a grid element. The lower grid element It) is shown in detail by Fig. 2 and may include, for example, a plurality of spaced bosses it over a substantial area of the grid element. Obviously, dilferent patterns may be employed to suit requirements. In addition, each grid element, preferably a casting; includes a suitable batter gutter 12. It may be noted from Fig. 2 that the lower grid casting is formed with the pattern of the bosses displaced eccentrically with respect to the outline of the casting. This arrangement provide space for a hinge cavity I3 to lrsiceive a hinge assembly indicated generally a,

In Fig. 3, I have shown in detail the upper grid element l5, which preferably mates with the lower grid, and includes corresponding bosses l5 and batter gutter I1. In addition, the upper grid includes a recess l8 to receive hinge assembly l4. As can be seen by a reference toFig. 1, the respective batter gutters and the embossed areas form opposed cooking surfaces between which edibles, batter, or other ingredients may be placed for baking.

Referring now to Figs. 4 and 5 of the drawing, I have shown in detail components of my improved expansion hinge. One part of the hinge consists of a bracket l9 having a base portion and an upstanding portion or flat plate 2|. The base portion may be apertured as at 22 for attachment of the bracket to a grid. The upwardly extending portion 2| of this bracket is slotted as at 23 transversely and adjacent its upper edge. It may be noted that slot 23 includes a downwardly extending end portion 24 for a purpose to be described. In addition, a projecting ear 25 is lanced from portion 2| of the bracket and formed to extend therefrom substantially at right angles.

As clearly shown by Fig. 4, a hinge plate or pivot H plate 26 of generally rectangular configuration is adapted to be inserted in slot 23. Preferably the thickness of this hinge plate is slightly less than the vertical dimension or width of slot 23 to permit limited freedom of movement between the hinge plate and bracket. For attachment of the hinge plate to the bracket, I provide notches 2'! and 28 adjacent one edge of the hinge plate, with an car 29 of one notch turned downwardly to be received in downwardly extending portion 24 of 6 slot 23 in the bracket. The notches form a tongue at the edge of the hinge plate 25 which is received in the slot 23. An additional pair of notches 30 and 3| are provided on the hinge plate adjacent its opposite edge for its pivotal connection to th upper grid by means of the remaining ears 32 and 33.

It can be seen from Fig. 4 that both the hinge bracket and hinge plate can be readily formed from sheet metal stock by simple punching and forming operations. The dimensions are selected so that hinge plate 26 may be inserted into slot 23 with the inner edges defining slots 21 and 28 limiting the extent of engagement. When assembled, as shown in Fig. 5, ear 28 of the hinge plate is bent upwardly into its original co-planar position with respect to the remainder of the plate. This simple fabrication permanently conmeets the hinge plate to the bracket.

In Figs. 6 and 7, I have shown the hinge structure attached to the grid elements of the Waffle iron. As shown, the base portion 20 of the hinge bracket is secured to the lower grid I0 Within cavity l3 by any suitable fastening means, such as screws 45. Ears 32 and 33 of the hinge plate are pivotally connected within suitable apertures formed in hinge fasteners 35 and 36, as shown more clearly in Fig. 3. Each hinge fastener is secured to the upper grid by means such as nut 31, as shown in Figs. 6 and '7.

In Fig. 6, I have shown the waille iron in its closed and expanded position with the upper grid 15 displaced upwardly in parallel spaced relation from lower grid Hi. This is the position of the various components, for example, upon completion of the baking of a waffle. As will .be well understood, the waffle batter normally expands during baking and the relatively loose fit between hinge plate 26 and bracket l9 permits this vertical displacement. In addition, the entire upper grid and housing assembly is mounted on the hinge plate for movement to the open position shown in Fig. '7.

As may be seen upon comparison of Figs. 6 and 7, hinge plate 26 is permitted limited pivotal movement with respect to bracket I3. In the Fig. '7 position, projecting ear 25, in cooperation with slot 23 in the bracket, limits th downward pivotal movement to limit likewise the downward movement of the upper grid. Thus, the outer edge of the upper grid may always swing freely within cavity 13 of the lower grid as the waflle iron is opened, obviating the possibility of cohesion or abrasion between the grids. In addition, the position of car 25 and its vertical dimension limit the pivotal opening motion of the upper grid to slightly more than as shown in Fig. 7.

In View of the above description, it may be seen that I have provided an expansion hinge for a waffle iron which is entirely concealed within the outlines of the grid castings. Each component of the hinge assembly is of the utmost simplicity and is designed for mass production methods to minimize labor and material costs. This result is accomplished while providing an expansion hinge adequately protected from accidental damage and operative to permit expansive movement during baking, as well as pivotal movement for access to the grid surfaces.

While the present invention has been described by reference to a particular employment thereof, it is to be understood that numerous modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the essence of my invention. I, therefore, aim in the appended claims to cover all such equivalent variations as come within the true spirit and scope of the foregoing disclosure.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

Concealed hinge means for connecting to r two members which when in closed position one on th other have adjacent contacting surfaces comprising walls which define opposed hinge cavities in said members positioned at adjacent edges of and within the confines of said members, a hinge bracket fastened in one of said cavities comprising a flat plate which extends transversely across such cavity and outwardly to a point beyond such cavity whereby when the two members are in closed position its outer end is in the other cavity, the outer end of such plate being provided with a transversely extending slot, pivot means in the other cavity, a pivot plate also in the other cavity which extends at substantially a right angle to said flat plate, and means pivotally connecting one side edge of said pivot plate in said slot comprising a tongue on the pivot plate which projects through the slot and ears on the tongue positioned behind the fiat plate to hold the tongue in the slot, and means for pivoting the other side edge of said pivot plate to said pivot means.

HOMER H. MILLER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 465,445 Bennett Dec. 22, 1891 1,192,161 Bowser July 25, 1916 1,465,268 Holbrook Aug, 21, 1923 1,337,232 Reinhardt Dec. 22, 1931 2,015,812 Nelson Oct. 1, 1935 2,032,109 Bolesky Feb. 25, 13 2,176,855 Gough Oct. 17, 1939 2,211,581 Ross Aug. 13, 1940 2,230,728 Propernick Feb. 4, 1941 2,246,317 Parr June 17, 1941 2,354,240 Young et al H July 25. 1944 2.554.333 Kaplowitz May 28, 1951 

